A study of building technology in the Natal building industry, South Africa

Abstract

This thesis reports the findings of a mail survey of 215 randomly selected Natal building industry professionals consisting of architects, civil engineers, quantity surveyors, academics, managers of building product manufacturers, and building managers. As a result of no known previous studies concerning technological progress in the South African building industry, the study was conducted at a primary level. Its purpose was to (1) identify sections of building work that had the greatest opportunity for technological improvement, (2) identify reasons for the slow technological progress in the building industry, and (3) establish directions for continuing this research focus. Descriptive statistics were used to report the findings of the study. The section waterproofing, was found to have a major opportunity for technological improvement. Standards and building codes were found to be a major barrier to the use of new building technologies. The major constraints to the research and development of new building technologies were: the poor communication link between researchers and end users, insufficient research funds from the private and public sectors, no profit incentive to undertake research, and the lack of awareness on the importance of research and development of new building technologies. Other significant findings from the responses to the open ended questions were also reported.